| | From being Maria sharapova bag -dinner entertainment for the royal English families to being a breathtaking event at a break neck speed, the game of table tennis has seen it all. No wonder the game of whiff whaff boasts of being the biggest participation sports ever to have been played. The game was inducted into the Olympic scheme of things from the 1988 Games.
This year at the London 2012 Summer Olympics, the game will be played from July 28th to August 8th at the ExCel Sporting Center, which is the largest venue in this year's edition. ExCel will also host boxing, judo, wrestling, fencing, taekwondo and weight lifting apart from table tennis. There will be an equal number 86 of men and women (172 in total) playing for the four medal events. Each nation can send 3 men and 3 women for all the events. The four medal events are the Singles events for women and men and the team event. This year as well, China will be the team to watch out for as they would like to increase their tally of gold medals. As for the audience, get positively content and ready to be at the edge of your seats at all times. The game will not slow down for you.
The table for the game measures 2.74 meters in length and 1.525 meters in width with a net of 15.25 centimetres height equally divides the table into half. The principles are same as Lawn Tennis but the scoring method is different. Each match is of seven sets with the player winning as soon as their score reaches 11. Four singles and a doubles match, best out of five, forms the team event. Each team can have a maximum of three table tennis players. Unlike Lawn Tennis, serve changes hands after two consecutive points are scored. The serve continues to change after every score when the scoreboard shows 10-10.
In the Summer Games at London in 2012, all ping pong matches will be played with elimination rules. If a player loses, he is knocked out of the event. The players have to advance towards the finals by knocking off their opponents. However, the top 16 ranked players automatically play in the 3rd round.
The umpire and their assistants need to stand or stay seated exactly in front of the net on either end. They need to assure a fair game and proper scoring.
Players can be penalised if they touch the net or the table, serve not clean or the serving sequence is improper in case of a doubles match. Therefore, they cannot be positively content or relaxed at any given point.
The game demands high degrees of stamina, speed agility and flexibility. Having an excellent eyesight and superb hand-eye coordination is a prerequisite. The players also need to be nimble footed and must possess instant reaction skills. | | | |
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